For Writing, Math, Essays, SAT, ACT and more...

There's nothing more boring and ineffective than generalities. Interesting, convincing writing is specific. Instead of writing "Last year in one of my classes...", write "For example, I found myself in a predicament during a review session in Pre-calculus when...".

Know what you are going to write, even before you see the prompt - Part 1: Structure.

First of all, come up with an essay STRUCTURE that you will use, no matter what the prompt is, no matter what your examples are. You should not be trying to organize your paper while the timer is counting down, so do it now. Many different formats might be appropriate; here's a suggestion that is based upon the 5-paragraph essays that you're already writing in school.